Buffing/Polishing Slightly Alligatored Victor shellac finish

[Garret]

Hello all,

Have any of you all ever used a wood buffing wheel or similar mechanical methods to polish up and wax slightly alligatored shellac finishes on your Victrolas? I have a Victrola XVIII that I am sure could stand some polishing, since the alligatoring is minor, but am not sure the best way to go about it, considering that I am tired of using my hands to clean finish!

[Jerry B.]

I'd be afraid that a buffing wheel would be too aggressive and damage the high spots on the finish such as the small trim pieces that frame the panels on the XVIII. I'd do the job by hand using Kotton Klenser and 0000 steel wool and I think you'll be pleased with the results. If you've never cleaned a finish using this method, you might want to start on a back panel or better yet, a more common Victrola. Jerry Blais

[JohnM]

A buffing wheel will heat the finish causing it to melt and will 'pull' the finish unmanageably. Also, the instant the finish melts, it will begin to load the buffing pad and the characteristic of the pad will rapidly change causing even more unmanageability . What I mean by manageability is the ability to predict and control what is going on at any given instant at the point of contact between pad and surface (which is difficult to see). Finishes alligator because the oils that allow a finish to expand and contract have left the finish. The finish has shrunk and hardened. One needs to slowly and painstakingly abrade/dissolve the alligators down to the thinnest thickness of the finish -- and then a little more -- before applying a new historically correct finish over the old. Machinery has no place in this work, but patience does.

[Garret]

[quote="JohnM"]A buffing wheel will heat the finish causing it to melt and will 'pull' the finish unmanageably. Also, the instant the finish melts, it will begin to load the buffing pad and the characteristic of the pad will rapidly change causing even more unmanageability . What I mean by manageability is the ability to predict and control what is going on at any given instant at the point of contact between pad and surface (which is difficult to see). Finishes alligator because the oils that allow a finish to expand and contract have left the finish. The finish has shrunk and hardened. One needs to slowly and painstakingly abrade/dissolve the alligators down to the thinnest thickness of the finish -- and then a little more -- before applying a new historically correct finish over the old. Machinery has no place in this work, but patience does.[/quote]

John,

Thanks for the summary!

Garret